Phase 1 phonics is the first stage of phonics development. It helps children develop the listening and sound-awareness skills they need before they begin learning letter sounds.
Unlike later phonics phases, Phase 1 does not focus on teaching children to match letters to sounds. Instead, children learn to listen carefully, notice different sounds and begin to understand that spoken words are made up of smaller sounds.
Phase 1 activities can be introduced from a young age and are particularly important during the early years.
On this page, you’ll find everything you need to know about Phase 1 phonics, including the seven aspects of Phase 1, listening games, environmental sounds, instrumental sounds, body percussion, rhythm and rhyme, alliteration, voice sounds and oral blending and segmenting.
What Is Phase 1 Phonics?
Phase 1 phonics develops children’s phonological awareness and listening skills.
Children learn to:
- listen carefully
- identify and distinguish between sounds
- remember sounds
- talk about sounds
- notice patterns in sounds
- hear sounds in spoken language
- begin to orally blend and segment sounds
These skills provide an important foundation for learning to read and spell.
Phase 1 can be taught through everyday conversations, songs, rhymes, stories, games and play.
The 7 Aspects of Phase 1 Phonics
Phase 1 phonics is traditionally divided into seven aspects.
These are:
- Environmental Sounds
- Instrumental Sounds
- Body Percussion
- Rhythm and Rhyme
- Alliteration
- Voice Sounds
- Oral Blending and Segmenting
Children can develop these skills through a wide variety of fun listening and speaking activities.
1. Environmental Sounds
Environmental sounds are the sounds children hear around them.
Children can learn to listen carefully to sounds such as:
- cars
- birds
- dogs
- rain
- doors closing
- telephones
- footsteps
- water
- people talking
Encourage children to identify the sound and describe what they can hear.
Phase 1 Environmental Sound Activities
Sound Walk
Take children outside and encourage them to listen carefully.
Ask:
What can you hear?
Can you hear something nearby?
Can you hear something far away?
Mystery Sounds
Make a sound without showing children what made it.
For example:
- shake a container
- tap a table
- open a zip
- crumple paper
Ask children to guess what made the sound.
Sound Matching
Play or make two sounds and ask children whether they are the same or different.
2. Instrumental Sounds
Instrumental sounds are sounds made using musical instruments or everyday objects.
Children explore how different objects produce different sounds.
For example:
- tapping
- shaking
- scraping
- banging
- ringing
Children can experiment with instruments such as:
- drums
- bells
- shakers
- triangles
- wooden blocks
- tambourines
Phase 1 Instrumental Sound Activities
Give children different instruments and allow them to explore the sounds they can make.
Ask:
Is your sound loud or quiet?
Is it fast or slow?
Can you make the sound louder?
Can you copy my sound?
These activities encourage children to listen carefully and distinguish between different sounds.
3. Body Percussion
Body percussion involves making sounds using the body.
Examples include:
- clapping
- stamping
- tapping
- clicking fingers
- patting knees
- slapping hands
Body percussion helps children develop their awareness of rhythm and sound patterns.
Phase 1 Body Percussion Activities
Try copying simple patterns.
For example:
clap – clap – stamp
Then ask children to copy the pattern.
Gradually make the patterns longer and more challenging.
You can also combine movement with songs and rhymes.
4. Rhythm and Rhyme
Rhythm and rhyme help children become aware of patterns in spoken language.
Children can listen for rhyming words in songs, poems and stories.
For example:
cat – hat
sun – fun
log – dog
bee – tree
Phase 1 Rhythm and Rhyme Activities
Rhyming Stories
Read stories containing repeated rhyming patterns.
Rhyme Spotting
Say two words and ask:
Do these words rhyme?
For example:
cat – hat
cat – dog
Rhyme Hunt
Ask children to find objects that rhyme with a particular word.
You could say:
Can you find something that rhymes with “log”?
5. Alliteration
Alliteration is when words begin with the same sound.
For example:
big brown bear
silly snake
Peter picked peppers
Alliteration helps children pay attention to the initial sounds in words.
Phase 1 Alliteration Activities
Choose an initial sound and find words that begin with it.
For example:
s
sun
sock
snake
sand
You can make silly phrases together:
Silly Sam saw seven snakes.
Encourage children to listen carefully to the beginning of each word.
6. Voice Sounds
Voice sounds help children explore the different sounds they can make using their voices.
Children can experiment with:
- humming
- whispering
- shouting
- singing
- making animal sounds
- making long sounds
- making short sounds
Phase 1 Voice Sound Activities
Ask children to copy different sounds.
For example:
mmmmmm
ssssss
shhhhh
oooooo
You can also make animal sounds and ask children to guess the animal.
For example:
What animal says “woof”?
Encourage children to experiment with changing the volume, pitch and length of their voices.
7. Oral Blending and Segmenting
Oral blending and segmenting help prepare children for reading and spelling.
Importantly, children do not need to see letters during these activities.
They are listening to sounds in spoken words.
Oral Blending
Say the sounds in a word separately and ask children to blend them together.
For example:
c – a – t
→ cat
Another example:
d – o – g
→ dog
The child listens to the separate sounds and works out the whole word.
Oral Segmenting
Oral segmenting is the opposite.
Say a word and ask children to identify the sounds they can hear.
For example:
cat
→ c – a – t
Or:
dog
→ d – o – g
Oral blending and segmenting are important foundations for the blending and segmenting children will later use when reading and spelling with letters.
Why Is Phase 1 Phonics Important?
Phase 1 gives children the listening skills they need for later phonics learning.
Before children can learn that a letter represents a particular sound, they need to be able to hear and distinguish sounds.
Phase 1 helps children develop:
- listening skills
- attention
- sound discrimination
- vocabulary
- speaking skills
- rhythm and rhyme awareness
- awareness of sounds in words
- oral blending
- oral segmenting
These skills provide an important foundation for learning to read and spell.
Does Phase 1 Teach Letter Sounds?
No.
Phase 1 focuses on listening and sound awareness rather than learning grapheme-phoneme correspondences.
Children explore sounds through talking, listening, singing, rhymes, stories and play.
The more formal teaching of letter-sound correspondences begins in Phase 2.
How to Practise Phase 1 Phonics at Home
You don’t need lots of specialist equipment to practise Phase 1 phonics.
Many activities can be incorporated into everyday life.
Go on a Sound Walk
Listen carefully to the sounds around you.
Ask your child to identify what they can hear.
Sing Nursery Rhymes
Sing familiar nursery rhymes together and encourage your child to join in with repeated phrases.
Play Rhyming Games
Say a word and ask your child to think of another word that rhymes.
Make Sound Patterns
Use clapping, stamping or tapping to create simple patterns.
Ask your child to copy you.
Play I Spy
Instead of focusing only on letters, play listening games such as:
I spy with my little ear something that makes a loud sound.
Practise Oral Blending
Say a simple word using separated sounds.
c – a – t
Ask:
What word am I saying?
Practise Oral Segmenting
Say a simple word and ask your child to tell you the sounds they can hear.
What sounds can you hear in “sun”?
Phase 1 Phonics Activities
Sound Walk
Go outside and listen for different environmental sounds.
What’s That Sound?
Make a sound behind a screen and ask children to identify it.
Instrument Matching
Match different instruments or objects to their sounds.
Copy My Pattern
Create a simple clapping or tapping pattern and ask children to copy it.
Rhyme Time
Read rhyming books and find words that rhyme.
Silly Alliteration
Create funny phrases using words beginning with the same sound.
Animal Voices
Make animal noises and ask children to identify the animal.
Oral Blending Game
Say a word in separated sounds and ask children to blend them.
Oral Segmenting Game
Say a word and ask children to identify the individual sounds they can hear.
Free Phase 1 Phonics Resources
Ready to practise Phase 1 phonics?
Explore our collection of free printable Phase 1 phonics resources designed to support listening, sound awareness, oral blending, oral segmenting, rhythm, rhyme and early phonological awareness.
Phase 1 Activities
Explore fun activities that help children develop their listening and sound-awareness skills.
[Explore Phase 1 Activities →]
Phase 1 Worksheets
Find printable activities to support early phonics and listening skills.
[Explore Phase 1 Worksheets →]
Phase 1 Assessment
Use simple activities to observe children’s listening, sound discrimination and oral blending and segmenting skills.
[Explore Phase 1 Assessment →]
Phase 1 Phonics FAQs
What is Phase 1 phonics?
Phase 1 phonics is the first stage of phonics development. It focuses on listening, sound discrimination, rhythm, rhyme, alliteration, voice sounds and oral blending and segmenting.
What are the 7 aspects of Phase 1 phonics?
The seven aspects are environmental sounds, instrumental sounds, body percussion, rhythm and rhyme, alliteration, voice sounds, and oral blending and segmenting.
Does Phase 1 teach letter sounds?
No. Phase 1 focuses on listening and sound awareness. Children begin learning letter-sound correspondences during Phase 2.
When should Phase 1 phonics start?
Phase 1 skills can be developed from a young age through everyday conversations, songs, rhymes, stories and play. Children do not need to wait until they start formal phonics lessons.
How can I practise Phase 1 phonics at home?
Try sound walks, nursery rhymes, rhyming games, listening games, clapping patterns, alliteration activities and oral blending and segmenting games.
What is oral blending?
Oral blending involves hearing separate sounds and putting them together to make a word.
For example:
c – a – t → cat
What is oral segmenting?
Oral segmenting involves breaking a spoken word into its individual sounds.
For example:
cat → c – a – t
What comes after Phase 1 phonics?
Children move on to Phase 2, where they begin learning grapheme-phoneme correspondences and applying them to read and spell simple words.
Continue Your Phonics Journey
Once children have developed strong listening and sound-awareness skills, they are ready to begin learning about the relationship between letters and sounds.
Or explore our [Free Phonics Resources →] for printable activities, flashcards and worksheets to support phonics learning at home or in the classroom.